Redz Is Blogging

I came upon this article today.  It’s about the writer’s strike in the States. The article reports that in the negotiations, the writers are demanding that they get paid each time their new media content is played on an iPod.

I then had an email conversation with a friend. We both agree that in Singapore, a writing contract cedes all rights to the client. Whatever content we create, once it’s published, doesn’t belong to us anymore. Wouldn’t it be great if we could charge for each time an article is reprinted?

I work for an entertainment magazine, and I simply love the fact that music, video, news and gossip is so easily accessible over the internet. Of course, the argument of file sharing and internet piracy will always exist, and governments will surely strive to look for methods to stop, or at least attempt to diminish, the acts of piracy.

When I interview celebrities, one of the questions I like to ask is for their views of internet piracy. As far as I can remember, every single interviewee has expressed no qualms about file sharing over the internet.

And I have to agree, that because of the availability of music, I feel better informed. I get to experience media that I would never chance upon if I were to limit my channels to local TV and radio stations.

I Twitter.

I think it’s a wonderful internet development, and I’m madly in love with it. Basically, it’s a website tool that yet again, creates a network for users to stay connected with their friends. Using your mobile phone, IM (Instant messaging) or Web, you send a short update to Twitter, who will then send a mass update to your “followers”.

Essentially, Twitter was created to ask you one question: What are you doing now?

So imagine if I were stuck in line at the bank and I SMS this to Twitter: “I’m at the bank along Orchard Road. Will be done in 15. Anyone free for lunch?”

Think of the possibilities!

And before you know it, Twitter has sparked a few clones. Pownce and Jaiku are just two similar websites that have spawned following the success of Twitter.

There’s been a lot of talk lately about social networking sites and the impact it has on the cyber generation. From Friendster to Multiply to Facebook, it’s no surprise that these website are fast influencing communication channels between the society now.

In fact, this mad flood of sites can be pretty disconcerting, especially since we keep getting email invites in our mailbox daily.

The first social networking site I joined was Friendster. And I only registered out of sheer peer pressure.

A couple of months back, I interviewed the marketing manager of Friendster when he dropped by Singapore (I can’t, for the life of me, remember his name. And I can’t seem to find him on the Friendster website). It was a profile article for the magazine I write for. It was pretty much an eye-opening conversation.

He told me that although Friendster is a Californian company, the majority of its users are Asian. And a majority of that percentage is made up of Singaporeans. I asked him what could be the reason for this, and to put it simply, he explained that it was sheer luck.

Friendster was possibly one of the pioneers of social networking sites, yet it never evolved to the same popularity as MySpace or Facebook. A possible reason for this is that Friendster got lost amidst the dearth of the other websites. While MySpace targetted musicians, Facebook aimed at colleges, and Multiply strived to be all-rounded, Friendster stuck its ground to be a website that connected friends.

But it would be naive of me to assume that Singaporeans are attracted to the integrity of Friendster.

Right now it seems that the current phase of obsession in Singapore is attributed to Facebook. It’s addictive nature is well documented. And it surprises me how EVERYONE seems to be on Facebook… more so than Friendster. Even a lecturer from my alma mater has just invited me as a “friend”.

So I thought I’d tackle the assignment topic.

“A discussion of how blogs differ from websites, raising issues relating to designing for online environments in comparison to designing for print documents.”

This blog post gives a pretty simple and comprehensive explanation of the difference between a blog and a website. I’ve copied a table and included it in this post.

<ita>Taken from Lorelle on WordPress.</ita>

When it comes to design and layout, it’s most obvious that blogs are simpler than your regular website. However, now that blogging websites allow for the manipulation of HTML CMS and CSS, it’s no surprise that the line between blog-design and website-design is being blurred.

I was sitting at the office, looking at this blog, and I think it’s too boring for words (pun fully intended). So tonight, I shall try and write about something relevant, yet heaps more fun.

After my entry on the professionalism of blogging, I’ve decided to talk about the negative aspects of blogging. The most obvious of course, is the lack of control and regulation.Since blogging is relatively uncontrolled by a central power, it’s easy to take advantage of the freedom of speech that it allows.

What immediately comes to mind is the recent local controversy regarding sensitive issues. The topic of racial equality has always been a touchy issue amongst Singaporeans. And with the anonymity that internet blogging allows, many bloggers feel that they can hide behind their computer screens and publicly verbalise (electronically, of course) their ill feelings.

Other examples of local blogging controversies involve Xiaxue, arguably Singapore’s most well-known blogger. She’s always been one to speak her mind, and has been criticised several times for speaking too freely.But despite her vitriolic words, she has turned into an internet celebrity of sorts.

Of course, controversy isn’t limited only to Singaporean context. For example, the controversy surrounding the drug Cialis and its manufacturers started with a simple blog post and escalated into a very public war of words.

So it looks like bloggin comes with its fair share of negativity. While news wires and agencies follow a strict and stringent set of guidelines, there isn’t a central organisation or power to watch or measure the words from blogs. Personally, I feel that if something of this magnitude was attempted, it would solve quite a number of problems of authentication and such. That said, I’m not sure how it’s possible to regulate blogs from around the world. In fact, I’ve got the feeling that it’s impossible. Oh well.

A part of me would like to think that the term “professional blogging” is a sort of oxymoron. I’ve always viewed blogging as a fun way to keep in touch with the people you know. Some might argue that it’s impersonal and will just perpetuate dependence on technology, but I disagree. But I have to admit, that blogging can be a professional and serious matter.I still strongly believe that blogging is a personal way to reach out to an ever-growing audience. And that’s why many companies and professionals are resorting to blogs as a way to connect to their audience.

For example, prominent professional web logs include Microsoft’s, Google, and Sony Playstation.

This article explains why blogging is so important to businesses, while this one gives examples of how a blog can help a company’s public relations. (One of the disadvantages of blogging, is the assumption that the readers would click on every out-going link to read what the blogger is referring to. We all know that not everyone is trigger-happy enough to click OUT of the blog.)

Blogs are now considered reputable sources, and are even quoted in newspapers.

I changed the layout of this blog today. I went through several incarnations before I ended up with this one. I should start writing some entries that make sense. Or I might fail.

I’ve set up this blog for my DDP assignment, a “Professional Weblog” that should discuss blogging as a new form of media publishing.

I’m sure many of my schoolmates will agree — ours is a generation that is no stranger to blogging. But for this particular assigment, I decided to try something different.

• I started this new blog on Word Press, although I’m more familiar with Blogger and Multiply.
• I have a tendency to rant and ramble on my personal blog. But this being a more professional weblog, I will consciously have to reign myself in.
• I intend to make full use of all the blogging utilities out there, to illustrate the point that blogging has evolved into much more than just an “online diary”.

Blogging, or Web Logging, is a common internet phenomena that has grown surprisingly fast over the past few years. Wikipedia defines it as “a website where entires are written in chronological order and commonly displayed in reverse chronological order.”

Most blogs are personal diaries, relaying the incidences of the owner’s day. It’s usually written in informal language, and normally written for a personal and familiar audience. But there are also many blogs out there that are professional in nature. News, current affairs, music and entertainment, special interests etc, there are professional blogs for everything and anything we can think of.
Blogging is such an important aspect in the world, that everyone from international companies to music artistes to private organisation have have jumped onto the bandwagon. (I intend to explore this further is later posts).

The phenomena has grown exponentially utilising its universal appeal and reach to people of all ages. To meet this demand, many utilities have cropped up to enhance the experience of blogging. This blog will attempt to explore the phenomenon that is blogging, and the many tools and utilities that have eveolved from blogging. And in the spirit of blogging, the language use shall be personal, informal and fun!